Pneumatic grain-elevator



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1v J. LEWIS.

PNEUMATIC GRAIN ELEVATOR. No. 285,047. Patented Sept. 18, 1883.

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' J. LEWIS.

PNEUMATIC GRAIN ELEVATOR.

Patented Sept. 18, 1883 kid jlizrngs.

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SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 285,047, dated September 18, 1883.

Application filed J one 529, 1883.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOSEPH Lnwrs, a subject of Great Britain, residing in Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Pneumatic Grain-Elevators, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to methods of transfcrring grain and similar articles by pneumatic action; and it consists, first, in the employment of a direct carrying-blast leading to the point of delivery, and an induced current due to said blast, wherebythe grain is sucked into the blast and transferred thereby.

. in further mechanical features, also set forth transferred by my apparatus.

below.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional cle vation of an elevator to which grain is being Fig. 2 is a plan view of the vacuum-chamber. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a grain-ear adapted to be used with my invention. Figs. 4. and 5 are detail views of the hand'nozzle and vent sometimes used, and Fig. 6 is a vertical section of the vacuum-chamber.

In'said drawings I have shown the apparatus as employed in connection with an elevator-building, A, having a bin, A, into which the grain is being transferred by my apparatus from the railroad-car B.

The apparatus consists of a compressed-air. supply pipe, 0, leading from an air-reservoir, O, or from a compressor, and having a regulating-valve, c, a vacuum-chamber, D, into which said tube discharges, the blast graincarrying pipe E, opening from said vacuumchamber and leading to the receiving-bin or other receptacle into which the grain is'to be transferred, and conduits F, one or more, leading from the car B or other grain-receptacle from which the grain is to be transferred, and

discharging into the vacuunrchamber. The inlets and outlet-s for the air and grain in the (X0 model.)

' pipe is carried up into the mouth of the blastpipe E, so that the blast will be delivered wholly into the latter and not seek escape into the surrounding chamber. This creates a vacuum below said nozzle and in said chamupward current will naturally be greater than that of cold air.

v I have not shown the air-supply p1pe as connected to any heating or compressing appa- 'ratus; but it will be understood that any known means may be used for those purposes.

The conduits F are preferably of flexible tubingin part, at least andj oiuted to the vacuum-chamber cover by screw-couplings f, as shown, and they may be attached temporarily and during the unloading of the car to the bottom thereof bysimilar couplings. Several of them may open into one chamber, and all should be provided with valves f, whereby they may be closed and regulated.

It is desirable that railroad-cars be built with self-discharging bottoms, as thereby the labor of shoveling when unloading is lessened. They may for this purpose be provided with floors inclined from the sides to the center, as

shown in Fig. 1, and in such case openings at the apex of the angle formed by the floor are made, to which the conduits F are secured, as

shown in said figure. These openings are closed, when not in use, by valves m, andthe volume of the discharge may be controlled openings are secured funnels o, in which are similar valves, m, and to these funnels the conduits F are removably attached by couplings f or other suitable devices.

I have shown the conduits F as drawing grain from the bottom of the car, and such I deem to be the preferable mode of unloading; but in that method it is necessary to supply air to the point from which the grain is drawn, instead of relying upon its passage to said point through the mass of grain lying above it. To insure this air-supply I place in the car an air-tube, G, over each discharge-opening in the floor thereof, such tube extending .from above the level of the grain down to immediate proximity with the opening, as clearly illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3. This tube may extend up through the roof, and the amount of air admitted be controlled by a valve or register, 9, located at its top. Of course I do not wish in all my claims to be limited to this particular form of suspended air-vent, as it is obvious that openings might be made in the side of the funnel, or the coupling or side tubes be employed to admit or conduct the air to the bottom of the grain.

If it is not practicable to unload from the bottom of the car or other receptacle in which the grain may be stored, then I attach to the conduits F nozzles, which are intended to be inserted in the mass of grain from above, and which may be held in the hand. These nozzles are of peculiar construction, and consist of the nozzle proper, H, which is secured to the end of and is a continuation of the conduit, one or more vent-tubes, H H, placed parallel to the nozzle and extending down to the orifice thereof, and an inverted conical cap, H, secured to the lower extremity of the nozzle and vent-tubes, as illustrated. This cap is useful to prevent grain entering the vent-tubes when the nozzle is pushed down into the grain, and the vent-tubes supply air to the orifice of the nozzle in the same manner the vents G supply it to the funnels at the floor of the car, already described. The top of the cone is ofcourse open to admit the grain, and the vent-tubes may be regulated by valves h, if desired.

\Vhile I have chosen to illustrate my invention as used in transferring from a car to an elevator, it will be understood that it is equally adapted to transfer grain from one car to another and from any receptacle to another; also, that the entire apparatus may be mounted upon a car or vessel, and be moved about from place to place, as required.

\Vhen the cars are provided with self-discharging bottoms, as in Fig. 1, they may be provided with false bottoms when it is desired to carry other kinds of freight.

I reserve for a future application all claims to whichI may be entitled upon the cars here in shown, and the method ofventing the withdrawal of the grain, and upon the hand-nozzle also described.

I claim 7 1. The improved method of transferring grain by pneumatic action, consisting in feeding the grain to the blast by a suction-current lateral to and induced by said blast, substantially as specified.

2. The improvement in methods of transferring grain by pneumatic action, consisting in carrying it by a blast of hot compressed air, substantially as specified.

3. The apparatus for transferring grain, consisting of an airsupply pipe, a vacuum-chamber, and a blast-conduit, said pipe, chamber,

and conduit forming the air-passage of the apparatus, in combination with a suction-conduit lateral to and opening into said passage,

substantially as specified.

l. The combination, with the compressedair supply tube, of the vacuum-chamber, the blast-conduit, and suction-conduit, the orifices of the air-supply tube and the blast conduit into and from the vacuum-chamber being rela tively arranged after the manner of an in jector, substantially as specified.

5. The improved method of transferring grain by pneumatic action, consisting in the employment of a driving carrying-blast leading to the point of delivery, and an induced current due to said blast, whereby the grain is sucked into the blast and transferred thereby, substantially as specified.

6. Inpneumatictransfer apparatus, the combination, with a blast-conduit conducting the blast from the air-supply to the point of delivery, of a lateral or branch pipe leading from the discharging grain-receptacle into said blast-conduit, whereby the suction induced by the current is utilized to draw the grain into the blast, and the blast itself is utilized to carry it the remainder of the distance, substantially as specified.

JOSEPH LE\VI lVi tnesses:

H. M. BIUNDAY, EDW. S. EVARTS. 

